1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to configurations of a massage device to enhance muscle recovery after athletic exertion.
2. Description of the Related Art
When training or competing in sports, athletes undergo strenuous muscle exertions. Vigorous muscular activity results in buildup of lactic acid and other metabolites in muscle fibers. In addition, repetitive active contraction and passive stretching of muscle fibers during vigorous exercise may result in micro-trauma to the muscle fibers. Metabolic overload and micro-trauma result in tightening and contraction of muscles. This, in turn, impedes athletic performance.
Massage therapy expedites muscle recovery after vigorous exercise by activating certain vascular and neuromuscular pathways. Injured and exhausted muscles send pain messages to the spinal cord via small unmyelinated nerve fibers. Spinal reflexes further perpetuate and maintain this unwanted muscle contraction through motor efferents as a protective mechanism against further trauma. In accordance with the gate control theory of pain (See Jessell T M, Kelly D D: Pain and Analgesia, in Kandel E R, Schwartz J H, Jessell T M (eds): Principles of Neural Science, Third Edition, New York, Elsevier, 1991, pp 385-399, incorporated by reference herein), somatosensory stimulation and vibration during massage activate large myelinated nerve fibers that interrupt these unwanted reflexes by virtue of modulating the neurotransmitters in the spinal cord. As the motor commands from the spinal cord are suppressed, the contracted muscles are allowed to relax. This muscular relaxation improves vascular flow, which in turn allows better delivery of oxygen and nutrients and better washout of metabolites, thus expediting muscular recovery.
They key to the efficacy of athletic massage is sensory stimulation that is not perceived as painful by sensory receptors, thus preferentially activating the large myelinated nerve fibers that suppress the motor input to the muscles. While skilled massage therapists continuously adjust massage pressure to achieve this end, athletic massage equipment lacks the feedback mechanisms that would allow for such adjustments.
Existing massage equipment is typically made of a single material, such as wood or plastic, applying fixed pressure through a single hard surface at the point where the equipment contacts the skin. Furthermore, although some massage devices incorporate vibration stimulation, the vibration energy that is transferred through this single hard interface cannot be readily modulated. As such, the effectiveness of such equipment is limited.
Accordingly, there is a need for massage equipment that allows for easily adjusting the amount of pressure that is put on the body. There is further a need for a tool that athletes can use by themselves. Additionally, there is a need for massage equipment that better distributes energy and pressure to various body parts and that may be easily adjustable. Moreover, there is a need for massage tools that allow greater versatility of use within a single device.